New Britain Ready To Go With Fireworks Show

The New Britain Parks and Recreation Dept. hosted their 20th Annual Great American Boom at Stanley Quarter Park on July 4. The celebration included carnival games, food, pony rides, giant trampolines, inflatables, a concert and fireworks.

NEW BRITAIN — Fireworks fans and Independence Day revelers can rest easy: The Great American Boom is on schedule for July 4.

The city has lined up about $15,000 in donations and will kick in $25,000 of tax money to put on what's traditionally one of the biggest fireworks festivals in Connecticut.

Funding shortages jeopardized the show in recent years, but money is definitely available this time, according to city officials.

"The Great American Boom is one of the signature New Britain events. People love it," said John Healey, chief of staff for Mayor Erin Stewart.

Thousands of people from central Connecticut turn out for the show every summer, even though tight budgets have forced New Britain to scale back some of the related activities. The half-day of carnival attractions and live music at Stanley Quarter Park was cut back to a few hours several years ago, and the city has kept the new schedule in place to minimize costs.

In his last year in office, then-Mayor Timothy Stewart canceled the 2011 festivities altogether — only to reverse the decision soon afterward when the American Savings Foundation provided money to pay the company that stages the show.

In following years, the city asked for donations in the spring and early summer, cobbling together funding from the municipal budget, civic organizations' grants, and donations from local businesses, municipal labor unions and individuals. The American Savings Foundation and the Community Foundation of Greater New Britain have been the primary donors in recent years.

This winter, the parks and recreation department budgeted $25,000 to cover the bulk of the cost.

The city already has secured $15,000 in civic organizations' grants to cover the rest, Healey said. Most of the money goes to pay for the fireworks show itself, with the rest used for overtime pay for emergency service workers, parks staff and cleanup crews.

This year's activities begin at 5 p.m. July 4 at the park. The schedule includes entertainment, including a performance by Latanya Farrell & The Bookman Styles Band at 6 p.m. The fireworks display is set to start at 9 p.m.; in case of rain, the backup date is July 5.